(Credit to Fine Art America for the text bio below)

Elizabeth R. Urabe was born in Boston, MA, in 1961. She has traveled extensively throughout Europe, and after graduating from Carleton College in Northfield, MN, in 1983, she moved to Tokyo, Japan. In 1985, she met a living meditation Master and began a conscious spiritual journey that has completely transformed her life, inside and out. In 1995, quite spontaneously, she began to draw abstract pictures of extraordinary color and detail, which she believes to be the channeled reflection of inner energies that are not normally visible with the physical eyes. While pieces of her work have been sold in Japan, France, and in the United States, this is the first time that she has felt the timing to be right for making these pictures accessible to the entire world. Please visit www.erurabe.com or her new web site www.urabebatikdesign.com to view more of Elizabeth's life-transforming work. 'Life is a journey of the evolution of the spirit. At some point in the course of each person's life, something will happen that will bring about a 180 degree shift in the way he or she perceives reality. When this shift takes place, we begin to remember that the answers lie within us. We begin to take back our true power. We begin to remember that our purpose is to love. We begin to remember who we really are.' 'Many years ago, in a museum in Boston, I ran into a bronze statue of a Goddess. Her name was Kwan Yin, and the plaque at her feet told me that she was the Goddess of Compassion. I read the rest of what was written on the plaque, and it said: 'She sacrifices her own Enlightenment in order to lead others to It.' Quietly, I dissolved into tears. For the first time in my life, I felt as though I had found the words with which to accurately describe the essence of what I had felt, and suffered deeply from, seemingly forever... or at least since I had come into the physical, material world! In the decades to follow, as my spiritual hunger deepened and my path unfolded, these words were to haunt me; at times, bringing me comfort, because they indicated that - somewhere deep within me WAS in fact the all-encompassing, absolute experience of Enlightenment, for which my heart longed; at other times, causing me great distress and even anger, when I would question whether my being here was really making any positive difference at all on the world and on its inhabitants. In December of 1985, my destiny led me to the feet of a Siddha Guru, a perfectly realized Master who possesses the rare ability to awaken the Kundalini Shakti in a seeker and set him or her on the path to that same state of inner perfection. As I began to find the answers, not in books or in the preaching of those around me, but from within the depths of my own being, I - and my life - began to undergo a transformation. It was as if, one by one, the veils of illusion were being lifted from my eyes, and gradually, I was becoming able to see the Truth; not only about Who and What I was, but about what I was here to do. I did not, however, become instantly free of the sense of anger at having been dropped off on a planet where it felt to me as if no one had the slightest bit of interest in what I knew I had come to give. One morning, on my daily eight-mile walk, I engaged in a conversation with God and, all of a sudden, burst out in frustration: 'What am I DOING here, with this bunch of sleepwalking zombies?!' Immediately, a voice boomed out inside me: 'Wake them up! What on earth (literally :-)) do you think you are here for in the first place?' I never again questioned that this was in fact what I was here to do (waking people up spiritually), but rather, set my focus on seeking to better understand just what this meant in terms of the way I lived my life and interacted with people. Fifteen years, and an infinity of life-changing spiritually based experiences later, I finally evolved to the point of a very profound understanding of my personal life's work; and the essay to follow - which can help YOU to transform your own life, if you will allow it to - is to date the best reflection, with what limited language can do, of what I have been able to remember and to realize about the divine purpose of my life. One more thing, before I close this intro: if you are reading this now, I believe that we made, you and I, a sacred pact - before we came into this particular incarnation - that, when you were ready, I would come to you and give you that proverbial 'kick in the butt' that you knew you would need at this point in your own journey, to make sure that you remained true to your deepest inner commitment to go 'all the way'. I have a tendency to come along in people's lives when they have reached a plateau of sorts, and are resting relatively comfortably where they are, telling themselves that it has been difficult enough to get to THIS point...and are not so sure that getting up and continuing the climb, is worth the effort (sound vaguely familiar? O:-)). Easy as it can be for our egos to convince us that we ARE walking a truly spiritual path, all too often, all we have done is to shape shift and twist the facts of our lives, into a picture that we feel we can accept and live with....but which is not necessarily a life devoted to the Highest spiritual growth of which we are capable. So...as you read these words, and those in the essay to follow; and hopefully make/take the time to visit the spirit art on my web sites, if you experience discomfort, or even downright rage...KNOW that this is a good thing, not a bad one. It means that, inside yourself, space is being made for the awareness of a new level of reality to dawn upon your Consciousness. And now - to the heart of the matter! I believe life to be a journey of the evolution of the spirit. At some point in the evolution of each person's life, something will happen that will bring about a 180 degree shift in the way he or she perceives reality. When this shift takes place, we begin to remember that the answers lie within us. We begin to take back our true power. We begin to remember that our purpose is to love. We begin to remember Who we really are. The journey of the evolution of my spirit has been one of great diversity, in which I have taken many a 'road less traveled.' In retrospect, however, there was undeniably a unifying spiritual thread tying all of my experiences together: the theme of surrender. Despite being fiercely independent by nature, I have always recognized that the mystery of who I was, was not one that I would ever succeed in unraveling without divine intervention. Consequently, seeing the invisible, hearing the inaudible, feeling the intangible, and having unconditional faith in the inconceivable, were abilities that came naturally to me, rather than being strengths that I had to work to develop. But it wasn't until the ability to surrender became a conscious choice on my part, instead of something that I just seemed to fall into, that I was able to identify this 'underlying spiritual thread' that gave integrity to my life, as being the power of grace. The power of grace, which is the divine energy of healing and transformation, comes through each of us in different ways, to differing degrees, and takes on different forms. I believe this to be neither accident nor coincidence, and that whoever is 'directing' it knows our strengths and our weaknesses, and uses each of us in the most wide-reaching ways possible. Grace, as it comes through me as an individual, takes on the power of awakening. On the esoteric levels, grace sometimes touches those in my life with a gentle caress or a lullaby; sometimes shrills like an alarm clock; sometimes awakens with a swift kick in the butt; and, as a last resort, sometimes works through me to dump others (and me right along with them) into a bucket of ice-cold water, head first. The most dramatic physical level manifestation of the power of grace in my life thus far, has been the drawing of a large collection of pictures that I am absolutely convinced are the embodiment of the most powerful, yet subtle, spiritual energies available to mankind at this point in the evolution of our consciousness as a species. I did not just start drawing these pictures, even though at the time, it seemed as though that was what had occurred. One week before the process of drawing actually began, I had begun working with Julia Cameron's book, 'The Artist's Way', and I believe that it was my commitment to doing the exercises outlined in this powerful course, fueled by the accumulated strength of ten years of spiritual discipline on a meditation path called Siddha Yoga, that combined to make me strong enough to surrender to the reality of being a channel through which new energies of transformation and integration could make their way into our world. For four years straight, the pictures were the center of my life. They evolved on a daily basis, and the deeper I got into the process, the more apparent it became that it was not 'me' who was drawing them. No matter how tired I might be, any time I would lie down and try to rest, I would 'feel' the picture within me, taking shape and demanding to be put down on paper. Just as any woman who has had a baby knows that it is impossible to say 'no' to the miracle of childbirth, once it has begun, so, too, was it with these pictures. They were being born through me, coming into this world from some other realm, a realm of spirit; and once the process had begun, I had no choice but to do my part in completing it. What was even more amazing was that, after a picture was finished, I would stand and look down at it, marveling at its perfection and its beauty, and then I would literally 'hear' voices of all the other pictures, arguing amongst themselves as to which one would be the next one to come through me. Needless to say, this was all exciting, humbling, and finally, energizing, as picture by picture, my understanding of what these beings were, and why they had come, began to piece together. These pictures are a powerful catalyst for the kind of very real spiritual awakening that can help us to transform our lives. They are a mirror, in which we can see the reflection of our own soul. The energy they embody is alive, conscious, vibrating. You can actually form a relationship with any one of these pictures, and use it as a tool to assist you in your own processes of healing and growth. I invite you to do so; in fact, I beg you to do so. Our world is in desperate need of individuals courageous enough to take on the challenge of awakening completely. Over a period of four years, nearly 350 pictures came through me. I never once made an outline, and never drew a single picture that was not perfect for and as what it was. I consider them my 'spirit children' and I love them with a passion. It is my fervent desire that they might touch your life as they have touched mine. They, like each of us, have a destiny all their own: they are here to guide us Home. Broadly speaking, my work can be divided into three distinct groups, each with its own unique energies and purpose. The first group of pictures are images of Awakening. When something in you, on whatever level, be it physical, emotional, intellectual, or spiritual, responds to a picture from Group I, know that memories are being stirred within you of the way life was before fear entered our consciousness, when perfect Love was all we knew. The energies in these pictures will encourage introspection, triggering such questions as: 'Who am I? Why am I here? What is the true purpose of my life?' It is important to ask ourselves these questions, and to allow the answers to arise within us, even if the answers are initially a bit foreign or frightening. The second group of pictures are images of Healing. To heal means 'to make whole'. You will find, for the most part, that you experience either a strong attraction, or an equally strong aversion to the pictures in this group. This is because both those parts of ourselves that we like AND those parts of ourselves that we don't like, are important keys in helping to answer the kind of questions asked above. Our being is like a jigsaw puzzle, and all of the pieces are necessary in order for the mystery of who we are and why we are here, to be unraveled. The third group of pictures are images of Transformation and Reintegration. All healing involves looking at pain from a new and different perspective, and allowing it to be transformed into Love. We fear that which we do not understand. When right understanding is restored, fear dissolves and Love returns to take its place. The energy in these pictures is for those rare individuals who are ready to cease looking for a reason to be less than they are, and to take complete responsibility for themselves and for their lives. Here is where we stand up and claim our true Life's Work. This is where the pieces of the puzzle of our existence start to come together into a unified picture that makes sense. This is where we stop looking for someone else to give us permission to be who we are and do what we know in our hearts we came to do. In the sacred space of his or her own heart, each of us knows who we are and what we came to do. The fact of the matter is, it takes a lot more energy trying to be something we aren't, than it does to surrender to the truth of who we are. Meet your life head on, from the perspective of being willing to remember Who you are. See your Self in others. See your Self in nature. See your Self reflected in the dancing colors of these pictures I have channeled. See yourSelf, honor yourSelf, respect yourSelf, bow down to yourSelf. Above all, be true to yourSelf. The journey of the evolution of spirit is not linear. It is entirely possible to be drawn to a picture from Group III today, and one from Group I tomorrow. Ultimately, what matters most is to trust in the process of our own unfolding, and to honor ourselves and our path each step of the way. If one of these pictures is meant to be a companion to you as you progress on your path, you will know it. However, as their channel, I am very intimate with the subtle differences between the pictures, and what these differences mean in terms of the spiritual journey. Please feel free to contact me with any comments or questions you may have about the unique function of the energies in each picture. It will be my joy and my honor to hear of your impressions, and to share with you what I have come to understand about them and about their divine purpose. In closing, I would like to share with you my all time favorite quote; it was written by Marianne Williamson for Nelson Mandela, and no matter how many times we may have read the words before, I do not think that we can ever contemplate them too often. The quote reads as follows: 'Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be. You are a Child of God. Your playing small doesn't serve the world. There's nothing enlightened about shrinking so other people won't feel insecure around you. We were born to make manifest the Glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us, it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others. Elizabeth Urabe February 2009